After a brief exchange, Peter and Spider-Man Noir were invited into the house by Aunt May. The moment they stepped inside, a strong sensation immediately triggered in both their minds.
"That feeling..." Peter's eyes scanned the room and quickly landed on three "people." Specifically, a small girl wearing a plaid skirt, a four-legged red robot, and... a pig?
"Hi there~ My name is Peni Parker," the little girl waved hello, and the red spider-robot sitting on the floor behind her, SP//dr, waved its arm in response. The pig instantly stood up, trotted over to the two men, raised its snout, and extended a hand: "Hello, I'm Peter Porker..."
Peter stared wide-eyed at all three: "Wait! You aren't either..."
WUM WUM~
"Alright, don't say it," Peter cut himself off, waving his hand. The Porker-Sense... ahem, the Spider-Sense had gone off. Clearly, these three individuals—whose names were eerily similar to Peter Parker—were all Spider-People. And they were undoubtedly from different universes.
"Oh, my God! What happened to this universe? Why are there so many Spider-Men?" Peter collapsed onto the couch, looking utterly resigned. Based on his logical analysis from watching countless Spider-Man and superhero shows, if one Spider-Man equals one unit of danger, two are three units, three are nine units, and four are... it increases exponentially. By that logic, a gathering of this many Spider-People must be the precursor to a Multiversal Crisis!
Spider-Man Noir and Peter had become quite familiar with each other on their journey. Seeing Peter's state, Noir sat down beside him and patted his shoulder: "Hey, relax, buddy. We are Spider-Men." "You guys are Spider-Men. I'm just an ordinary man who just got bitten by a spider..." Peter grumbled. "Oh? You just got bitten by a spider?" The little girl, Peni Parker, bounced over to Peter, looking at him curiously. "Yes, I did~" Peter nodded.
"Kids, what would you like to drink?" Aunt May looked at the room full of Spider-People, a gentle smile gracing her lips. Even though these small Spider-People were not her own Peter, they were all like Peter, providing a powerful sense of comfort to her grieving heart.
"I'll take a glass of egg cream, please!" Spider-Man Noir raised his hand. "I don't want a drink; can I have a hot dog instead?" Spider-Ham (Peter Porker) asked, raising his trotter. "I want a glass of milk, to help me grow taller!" The little girl Peni grinned. Seeing everyone make themselves at home, Peter chimed in: "I'll take a glass of milk too, please."
"Huh?" × 4
"You want to grow taller too?" Peni looked at Peter doubtfully. Peter flicked his own long legs: "Darn it, I just want a glass of milk!"
Haha! The room immediately filled with laughter. Aunt May didn't feel bothered at all; she smiled warmly at the joking Spider-People and turned to the kitchen to prepare their requests.
In the living room, Peter started chatting with the others. Peni Parker is a 14-year-old girl. Her companion, SP//dr (the red spider robot), is her Spider-Mech. She is different from the other Spider-People. She didn't become a superhero through a mutated virus infection but through a symbiotic connection with the SP//dr armor.
As for Spider-Ham, his true form is a humanoid spider, but in his universe, Aunt May—May Porker—is an anthropomorphic pig and also a scientist. When May Porker was testing an atomic-powered hairdryer, she was affected by a side-effect that made her temporarily aggressive. She bit Peter Porker. Due to the radiation, Peter was transformed from a humanoid spider into a "pig-nosed humanoid spider," yet he retained his original spider abilities.
Spider-Man Noir originates from the Great Depression era. He was initially an idealistic but inexperienced young man who lacked power. His Uncle Ben and Aunt May often gave left-wing street speeches, but one day, Uncle Ben was brutally murdered. Peter took over Uncle Ben's work, continuing to speak on the streets. Later, while investigating a smuggling operation, Peter was accidentally bitten by a spider that escaped from the cargo, granting him super-abilities. He converted his Uncle Ben's World War I pilot uniform into his Spider-Man suit and began fighting the crimes of the monopolistic capitalists.
As for Peter Parker's (Earth-616) experience, it was even simpler (in this context). For the past two decades, he had been a typical high-achieving student, attending a top university, but choosing the relatively obscure field of astrophysics. After graduation, he pursued advanced studies and was brought by his mentor to that Martian research base to serve as an intern consultant. Then, he was bitten by a spider that appeared from nowhere and was inexplicably dragged into this universe. He had no powers yet, and none of the legendary experiences of the other Spider-People. Even the story of Peni Parker, a 14-year-old girl, seemed richer than his own.
Spider-Ham nudged his snout and patted Peter's leg with his tiny hand: "Don't worry, we all started this way." Peni pulled a candy from somewhere, unwrapped it, and held it out to Peter's mouth: "Here, they're delicious~" "Thank you," Peter took the candy, smiling his thanks. What a friendly and united Spider-Family.
Spider-Man Noir suggested: "If you're interested, maybe we can train you." "Train me?" Peter asked in surprise. "Yes. Your current situation is our past. We've all been through this phase, so we know what you need. Let us design a training regimen for you; it might work." Noir was very steady, speaking with logic and clarity. In his own world, he had fought alone for many years. Although he was treating Peter as a peer, he was at least a generation older than Peter.
"Alright, time to eat something first." Aunt May walked out of the kitchen with a tray of food and drinks. Peni sweetly thanked her, but then immediately pulled another piece of candy from her pocket. Noir stood up and lightly tapped her: "Less sugar, watch out for cavities." "Mmph—" Peni clutched her head and dutifully put the candy away.
Peter also stood up, helping to clear space on the table. Spider-Ham immediately hopped toward the kitchen. Soon, with everyone's collective effort, a simple but warm dinner was set out.